Providing subordinate forum portal options based on resources

ABSTRACT

A first user request may be received within a main forum portal that identifies a plurality of resources. The plurality of resources may correspond to one or more user questions about the plurality of resources. At least a first subordinate forum portal of the main forum portal may be identified that is associated with at least one of the plurality of resources. A first option may be provided, based on at least the identifying, the first option for use in joining the first subordinate forum portal.

BACKGROUND

This disclosure relates generally to discussion forums, and morespecifically, to providing subordinate forum portal options based on theresources a user has inquiries about.

A discussion forum (sometimes called a message or discussion board) is aweb portal that provides an online exchange of information between usersregarding various topics. Discussion forums may include varioussubordinate forum portals, which are separate web portals that includewritten posts associated with particular topics. Discussion forummembers may post questions, read questions and associated answers,and/or respond to other questions presented by other members. Discussionforums can be entirely anonymous or require authentication information(e.g., a user name and password). A discussion forum administrator ormonitor may also participate in a forum. The administrator may modify aswell as move or delete particular questions. Moderators may further helpthe administrator by guiding the discussions to make sure discussionforum rules are being followed.

SUMMARY

One or more embodiments are directed to a computer-implemented method, asystem, and a computer program product. A first user request may bereceived within a main forum portal that identifies a plurality ofresources. The plurality of resources may correspond to one or more userquestions about the plurality of resources. At least a first subordinateforum portal of the main forum portal may be identified that isassociated with at least one of the plurality of resources. A firstoption may be provided, based on at least the identifying, the firstoption for use in joining the first subordinate forum portal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example forum portal environment,according to embodiments.

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of an example process for receiving a userrequest that identifies a plurality of resources, and based on therequest, providing various subordinate forum portal options to discussone or more resources, according to embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of an example process for identifying on ormore resources that a user has a question about and providing varioussubordinate forum portal options accordingly, consistent withembodiments.

FIG. 4 is a diagram of an example screenshot of a main forum portal anda notification inquiring whether the user wants to join a subordinateforum portal based on the resources the user has a question about,according to embodiments.

FIG. 5 depicts a cloud computing node according to embodiments of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 6 depicts a cloud computing environment according to embodiments ofthe present disclosure.

FIG. 7 depicts abstraction model layers according to embodiments of thepresent disclosure.

While the present disclosure is amenable to various modifications andalternative forms, specifics thereof have been shown by way of examplein the drawings and will be described in detail. It should beunderstood, however, that the intention is not to limit the presentdisclosure to the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, thepresent disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, andalternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the presentdisclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to providingsubordinate forum portal options based on the resources a user hasinquiries about. While the present disclosure is not necessarily limitedto such applications, various aspects of the disclosure may beappreciated through a discussion of various examples using this context.

A common option for users today to resolve a question is to utilize anon-private search engine to search for answers. The shortcoming withthis method is that the user may arduously parse through variousreturned results and have to search for particular answers to thequestions, which may waste valuable time. The user may therefore haveextreme difficulty in finding a matching answer result to theirquestions. For example, the user may have a technical question thatinvolves running the resources of application A, application B, andapplication C. Application B may perform a core dump (e.g., the copyingto hard disk the contents of RAM at one moment in time). The user mayquestion why application B performs the core dump when running theseapplications together. Because this question and problem isparticularized, it may be arduous for a user to search for and find adirect match to this question.

Another common option for users to resolve a question is to utilize aspecialized discussion forum. Users within these forums may eitherdirectly post a question to the forum or search for various threads tofind as close a match as possible to their questions. If the discussionforum includes subordinate forums dedicated to particular resources ortopics, the user may search each of the subordinate forums and try tofind answers to their question. The users may accordingly have to parsethrough various threads and/or subordinate forums, which may wastevaluable time. Moreover, if a user merely posts a question withoutsearching for particularized threads or subordinate forums, the questionmay not be seen by those who are capable of answering the question.Accordingly, embodiments of the present disclosure are directed toidentifying, within a main forum portal, particular resources that theuser has a question about, determining whether a subordinate forumportal of the main forum portal specifies at least one of the particularresources, and providing, based on at least the determining, asubordinate forum portal option for a user to join in order to answerthe user's question. As disclosed herein, the term “main forum portal”in some cases refers to a main discussion board or forum, main website,or the like. Moreover, the term “subordinate forum portal,” as disclosedherein refers a child (or alternate) subordinate discussion board orforum, website, chat room, or the like in relation to the main forumportal. As disclosed herein, the term “resources,” may mean apparatuses,components of apparatuses, systems, other tangible items, programapplications, formulas, compounds, methods (e.g., how to perform acertain step or action), or the like.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example forum portal environment 100,according to embodiments. The forum portal environment 100 includes afirst client computing device 102 (e.g., a handheld device, laptop,desktop, etc.), one or more server computing devices 110, a network 118,a user information database 106, a resource library database 108, and aforum and question database 120. The server computing device 110 alsoincludes a resource synthesizing module 116. In an embodiment, the forumportal environment 100 is the cloud computing environment 50 of FIG. 5(or included in the cloud computing environment 50), as describedherein.

In an embodiment, the client computing device 102 and/or the servercomputing devices 110 can be configured the same or analogous to thecomputer system/server 12, as specified in FIG. 4 or cloud computingnodes of FIG. 5 (e.g., 54A, 54B, 54C, and/or 54N). The client computingdevice 102 may establish a connection with the server computing device110 via one or more networks 118, such as a local area network (LAN), ageneral wide area network (WAN), and/or a public network (e.g., theInternet).

In an embodiment, the client computing device 102 establishes aconnection, via the network 118, with the server computing device 110,which may correspond to a user entering or accessing a main forumportal. Upon entering the main forum portal, the user may request one ormore resources that the user has a question about. For example, a usermay utilize a graphical user interface of the main forum portal toselect a menu that specifies various technological resources. The usermay select application A and application B as the desired resources.Accordingly, the server computing device 110 may identify and locateapplication A and application B within the resource library database108. In an embodiment, the resource library database 108 includes eachresource within the main forum portal that each user has discussed. Inother embodiments, the resource library database 108 includespredetermined resources that users may not have necessarily discussed.In an embodiment, in response to the server computing device 110locating the specified resources via the resource library database 108,the server computing device 110 provides, via the resource synthesizingmodule 116, one or more subordinate forum portal options of the mainforum based on the identifying of the resources, which is discussed inmore detail below. The one or more subordinate forum portal options arefor use in answering the users question according to the resources theuser has a question about.

In one embodiment, the resource synthesizing module 116 matches (e.g.,via natural language processing (NLP)) the resources requested withinthe resource library database 108 to the resources as found within theforum and question database 120 (i.e., the resources found in varioussubordinate forum portals that include discussion of the resources). Theforum and question database 120 includes each subordinate portal forum,thread, and/or posts (e.g., questions and answers) of the main portalforum. In an embodiment, as described in more detail below, the user'scomputing device displays options for each subordinate forum portal thatdiscuss one or more of the requested resources and the user mayaccordingly select a subordinate forum portal and generate a questionwithin the subordinate forum portal.

In an embodiment, the server computing device 110 further includes auser information database 106. The user information database 106 storeseach of the forum members' names, authentication information (e.g.,usernames and passwords, etc.), and/or other user information.

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of an example process 200 for providing one ormore subordinate forum portal options to a user. In an embodiment, theprocess 200 begins when a server computing device, per block 203,receives a user request that identifies a plurality of resources. Inthese embodiments, the user first accesses the main forum portal andselects particular resources. For example, the main forum portal may bea graphical user interface that includes a menu. The user may select themenu, which includes a drop down list of each of the resources foundwithin a server data store (e.g., each of the resources found within theresource library database 108 of FIG. 1) that are discussed by otherusers. The user may select which resource he or she has a questionabout. For example, the user may select from the menu the resources of“Application A,” “Application B,” “Application C,” “a 4-core CPU,” and“32 GB of random access memory (RAM).” The user request is associatedwith a question regarding these resources. For example, the user maydesire to post the question of: “when I am running application A,application B with a 4-core CPU, application C, on 32 GB of RAM,sometimes application B core dumps after two hours. Has anyone seenthis?” In some embodiments, the user may provide user input that ranksthe plurality of resources according to the user's preference. Theranking may be a weighted preference of resources that the user needsand does not necessarily need in order to answer his or her question.For example, using the illustration above, although the user's resourcesinclude a 4-core CPU, the user may not necessarily need to answer his orher question using the 4-core CPU, but the CPU may include any number ofcores. However, the user may need application A, B, and C to answer hisor her question. Accordingly, the user may specify the resources he orshe absolutely needs and does not need in order to answer the question.In some embodiments, and as discussed in more detail below, theproviding of various subordinate forum portal options may be based onthe user ranking the plurality of resources according to his or herpreference.

Per block 205, a server computing device determines whether there areone or more subordinate forum portals that discuss at least one of theplurality of resources. The server computing device may determinewhether there are one or more subordinate forum portals that discuss therequested resources in various manners. For example, in one embodiment,in response to the user request per block 203, the server computingdevice matches the requested resources to the resources discussed byother users in subordinate forum portals (e.g., match the requestedresources as found in the resource library database 108 to subordinateforum portals posts within the forum and question database 120). Forexample, the user may have selected from a menu within a main forumportal, the resources of “SQL” and “index rebuilding.” Accordingly, theserver computing device searches the forum and question database 120 forthe resources “SQL” and “index/rebuild” to determine if any other usershad questions or answers that are associated with these resources. The“index rebuild” and “SQL” resources may correspond to the question of“how often should I rebuild indexes on my SQL server?”

In an embodiment, if there are no subordinate forum portals discuss(i.e., are associated with) any of the resources the user requests, thenper block 207, the server computing device receives the user's questionconcerning the one or more resources within a main forum portal. Forexample, the user may generate his or her question within a field of themain forum portal and wait for a corresponding response to his or herquestion. In other situations, the user may search the main forum portalor subordinate forum portals for related answers to the user's question.

Per block 209, if the server computing device identifies at least onesubordinate forum portal that discusses at least one of the requestedresources, the server computing device provides one or more subordinateforum portal options for use in joining the one or more subordinateforum portals. As disclosed herein, to “provide” one or more options(subordinate forum portal options) may mean that the server computingdevice associated with the main and subordinate forum portals may causea client computing device to display various subordinate forum portaloptions. In an example illustration, using the example above, the servercomputing device may have identified only two subordinate forum portalsthat discuss “SQL” and/or “index rebuilding.” Consequently, the servercomputing device transmits a message to the client computing devicecausing the client computing device to display two options (associatedwith the two subordinate forum portals) for a user to select and discusshis or her question. In some embodiments, the providing of one or moresubordinate forum portal options may be based on the user ranking theplurality of resources according to his or her preference, as discussedabove. For example, the user may need application A, and B to answer hisor her question, but not necessarily application C. Accordingly, theserver computing device may provide weighted options based on the user'sselected preferences or needs.

In an illustrative example of block 209, the resources identified in maybe: application A, application B, application C, and a container with afour-core central processing unit (CPU), 32 GB of random access memory(RAM), and 2 TB of storage. The providing of various subordinate forumportals options concerning these resources may be as follows: “Portal A:This portal contains a social media group in which the users havediscussed application A and application B only;” “Portal B: This portalcontains a social media group in which the users have discussedapplication B and application C only;” and “Portal C: This portalcontains a social media group in which the user have discussedapplication A, application B, and application C, but the containerincludes a two-core CPU and 16 GB of RAM.” A user may select whichsubordinate forum portal option he or she desires to discuss the inputquestion in and the client computing device receives the user request(block 213) to enter into one of the subordinate forum portals in orderto post the question.

In some embodiments, the server computing device may include anassociated matching percentage for each of the subordinate forum portaloptions identified. The matching percentage indicates a percentage ofthe plurality resources that are identified in each of the plurality ofsubordinate forum portals. For example, a user's question may include 4resources (e.g., application X, application Y, application Z, andapplication D), and a server computing device causes a client computingdevice to display a matching percentage for each subordinate forumportal option that meets all of the resources specified as follows:“Forum A: there is a 25% match for the resources identified (applicationX);” “Forum B: there is a 50% match for the resources identified(application X, and application Y);” and “Forum C: there is a 100% matchfor the resources identified (application X, application Y, andapplication Z).”

In an embodiment, per block 211, the server computing device ranks thesubordinate forum options. For example, using matching percentageidentified above, the server computing device ranks (i.e., recommends)Forum C as the first forum choice to post the question because there isa 100% match with the resources identified. For the same matchingpercentage reasons, forum B is the second recommended option, and ForumC is the third recommended option.

In an embodiment, the ranking or recommending of particular subordinateforum portals is based on a quantity of users associated with each ofthe plurality of subordinate forum portals and further based on anactivity level within each of the plurality of subordinate forumportals. For example, using the illustration above, even thoughsubordinate forum portal C includes a 100% match for the resourcesidentified, there may only be two users who have started the forum andnone of them have posted for two years. Alternatively, subordinate forumportal B may include 300 users and have an average update of 11.2messages per day. Accordingly, the server computing device may rank orrecommend Forum B as the Forum to join because of combining multiplefactors of matching percentage, activity level of the forums, and theamount of users. In some embodiments, each factor may be weighteddifferently to determine which subordinate forum portal to rank thehighest or recommend. The server computing device may utilize anysuitable method to identify activity level or amount of users, such asnatural language processing (NLP), polling methods, or any othersuitable method. In some embodiments, the ranking may further be basedon receiving user input, the user input ranking the plurality ofresources according to a user's preference, as discussed above.

The user may then select one of the options and per block 213, theserver computing device receives the user request to enter into one ofthe subordinate forum portals such that the server computing deviceprovides, per block 215, the subordinate forum portal to the user (e.g.,the server computing device causes a user's client computing device todisplay the subordinate forum portal). In some embodiments, the user maydesire to post a question within the subordinate forum portal and theserver computing device receives the user's question within the selectedsubordinate forum portal, per block 217. In some situations, the usermay read the subordinate forum portal posts and find the same questionthat the user had is already posted to the subordinate forum portal.Accordingly, the server computing device may not necessarily receive auser's question within the subordinate forum portal.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of one embodiment of an example process 300 foridentifying one or more resources that a user has a question about andproviding various subordinate forum portal options accordingly. In anembodiment, as soon as a user accesses a main forum portal website, theassociated server computing device, per block 301, provides anotification to a client computing device. The client computing devicedisplays the notification as an inquiry of whether a user would like tojoin a subordinate forum portal based on one or more resources the userhas a question about. The server computing device then determineswhether the user chose to join the subordinate forum portal based on thenotification, per block 302. If the user did not choose to join thesubordinate forum portal, then in an embodiment, per block 307, theserver computing device receives the user's question within a main forumportal. Alternatively, the user may not necessarily generate a questionbut searches for similar questions that the user has compared to his orher own. Consequently, the server computing device may not necessarilyreceive a user's question within a main forum portal.

If the user chooses to join a subordinate forum portal, then per block308, the server computing device identifies one or more of the resourcesthat the user has a question about. For example, a user may have aquestion about his or her mobile phone device and a server computingdevice may identify the model, carrier, and or operating system (theresources) of the mobile phone device. In these embodiments, a user mayhave a Universal Serial Bus (USB) connector and plug the connector intohis or her mobile phone at a first end (e.g., via a micro USB port ofthe mobile phone device) and into the user's computing device at asecond end of the connector via a USB port of the user's computingdevice. When a user establishes a connection between the mobile phonedevice and the user's computing device, the names of the identifiedresources may be transmitted from the mobile phone to the computingdevice and when the user logs onto the main forum portal, the user'scomputing device may transmit the names of the resources (e.g., themodel, carrier, and/or operating system of the mobile phone) to theserver computing device associated with the main forum portal.

In an embodiment, the server computing device performs block 308 bycausing a second notification to be displayed to a user computing devicethat prompts a user to select which resources he or she has a questionabout and based on the user selection, the server computing deviceidentifies the resources. In other embodiments, the user issues arequest to discuss particular resources. For example, within a mainforum portal GUI, the user selects a menu that includes common resources(e.g., corresponding to the resource library 108 of FIG. 1) discussed byother members and the user may select which resource he or she has aquestion about.

In an embodiment, per block 313, the server computing device provides,based on at least the identifying of one or more resources (block 308),various subordinate forum portal options to discuss the user's question.Accordingly, the server computing device causes to be displayed at theclient computing device options of various subordinate forum portalsthat the user may select to answer his or her question. As discussedabove, the providing of various subordinate forum portal options may beperformed in various manners. Per block 315, the server computing devicemay receive a user request to enter into one of the various subordinateforum portals to post the question or the user may search for a questionsimilar to the one he or she has. In an embodiment, a user generates aquestion within one of the selected subordinate forum portals and theserver computing device, per block 317, receives the user's question.

FIG. 4 is a diagram of an example screenshot of a main forum portal 400and a notification inquiring whether the user wants to join a privateportal (e.g., a private subordinate forum portal) based on the resourcesthe user has a question about, according to embodiments. In the exampleembodiment shown in FIG. 4, the screenshot of the main forum portal 400includes a GUI that contains a notification 402, a “yes” control button404, and a “no” control button 406. In some embodiments, a “private”subordinate forum portal may be private such that no user may haveaccess to the subordinate forum portals unless provided by the servercomputing device based on the user's request for resources and theproviding and selection of subordinate forum portal options. The privateportals may also be private such that members may not be able todecipher whether other users work for competing entities.

In an example illustration, a user may have a problem with a particularmobile phone and desire to seek an answer to a question the user hasabout the mobile phone. The user may first access the main forum portal400. In an embodiment, as soon as the user logs onto the main forumportal 400, an associated server computing device causes the user'sclient computing device to display the notification 402. Thenotification 402, as illustrated in FIG. 4, includes the inquiry: “Wouldyou like to join a private portal hosted by our support system thatmatches your phone model/carrier/OS?” Accordingly, this inquiryspecifies whether the user would like to join a subordinate forum portalof the main forum portal based on one or more resources (e.g., themodel, carrier, and the operating system (OS) of the mobile phone) theuser has a question about. If the user desires to join the subordinateforum portal that matches the resources of the mobile phone, the usermay select the “yes” control button 404 to request the correspondingsubordinate forum portal. Accordingly, as described above, the servercomputing device identifies the model, carrier, and/or operating systemof the mobile phone and matches the particular resources to thoseresources as found in other subordinate forum portals discussed by othermembers or users. The user may also select the “no” control button 406in order to stay on the main forum portal. In some examples, the “no”control button 406 may be selected if the user wants to look at variousdiscussion threads within the main forum portal that correspond tomultiple questions a user has.

It is understood in advance that although this disclosure includes adetailed description on cloud computing, implementation of the teachingsrecited herein are not limited to a cloud computing environment. Rather,embodiments of the present invention are capable of being implemented inconjunction with any other type of computing environment now known orlater developed.

Cloud computing is a model of service delivery for enabling convenient,on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computingresources (e.g. networks, network bandwidth, servers, processing,memory, storage, applications, virtual machines, and services) that canbe rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort orinteraction with a provider of the service. This cloud model may includeat least five characteristics, at least three service models, and atleast four deployment models.

Characteristics are as follows:

On-demand self-service: a cloud consumer can unilaterally provisioncomputing capabilities, such as server time and network storage, asneeded automatically without requiring human interaction with theservice's provider.

Broad network access: capabilities are available over a network andaccessed through standard mechanisms that promote use by heterogeneousthin or thick client platforms (e.g., mobile phones, laptops, and PDAs).

Resource pooling: the provider's computing resources are pooled to servemultiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with different physicaland virtual resources dynamically assigned and reassigned according todemand. There is a sense of location independence in that the consumergenerally has no control or knowledge over the exact location of theprovided resources but may be able to specify location at a higher levelof abstraction (e.g., country, state, or datacenter).

Rapid elasticity: capabilities can be rapidly and elasticallyprovisioned, in some cases automatically, to quickly scale out andrapidly released to quickly scale in. To the consumer, the capabilitiesavailable for provisioning often appear to be unlimited and can bepurchased in any quantity at any time.

Measured service: cloud systems automatically control and optimizeresource use by leveraging a metering capability at some level ofabstraction appropriate to the type of service (e.g., storage,processing, bandwidth, and active user accounts). Resource usage can bemonitored, controlled, and reported providing transparency for both theprovider and consumer of the utilized service.

Service Models are as follows:

Software as a Service (SaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto use the provider's applications running on a cloud infrastructure.The applications are accessible from various client devices through athin client interface such as a web browser (e.g., web-based e-mail).The consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloudinfrastructure including network, servers, operating systems, storage,or even individual application capabilities, with the possible exceptionof limited user-specific application configuration settings.

Platform as a Service (PaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto deploy onto the cloud infrastructure consumer-created or acquiredapplications created using programming languages and tools supported bythe provider. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure including networks, servers, operating systems, orstorage, but has control over the deployed applications and possiblyapplication hosting environment configurations.

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): the capability provided to theconsumer is to provision processing, storage, networks, and otherfundamental computing resources where the consumer is able to deploy andrun arbitrary software, which can include operating systems andapplications. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure but has control over operating systems, storage,deployed applications, and possibly limited control of select networkingcomponents (e.g., host firewalls).

Deployment Models are as follows:

Private cloud: the cloud infrastructure is operated solely for anorganization. It may be managed by the organization or a third party andmay exist on-premises or off-premises.

Community cloud: the cloud infrastructure is shared by severalorganizations and supports a specific community that has shared concerns(e.g., mission, security requirements, policy, and complianceconsiderations). It may be managed by the organizations or a third partyand may exist on-premises or off-premises.

Public cloud: the cloud infrastructure is made available to the generalpublic or a large industry group and is owned by an organization sellingcloud services.

Hybrid cloud: the cloud infrastructure is a composition of two or moreclouds (private, community, or public) that remain unique entities butare bound together by standardized or proprietary technology thatenables data and application portability (e.g., cloud bursting forload-balancing between clouds).

A cloud computing environment is service oriented with a focus onstatelessness, low coupling, modularity, and semantic interoperability.At the heart of cloud computing is an infrastructure comprising anetwork of interconnected nodes.

Referring now to FIG. 5, a schematic of an example of a cloud computingnode is shown. Cloud computing node 10 is only one example of a suitablecloud computing node and is not intended to suggest any limitation as tothe scope of use or functionality of embodiments of the inventiondescribed herein. Regardless, cloud computing node 10 is capable ofbeing implemented and/or performing any of the functionality set forthhereinabove.

In cloud computing node 10 there is a computer system/server 12, whichis operational with numerous other general purpose or special purposecomputing system environments or configurations. Examples of well-knowncomputing systems, environments, and/or configurations that may besuitable for use with computer system/server 12 include, but are notlimited to, personal computer systems, server computer systems, thinclients, thick clients, hand-held or laptop devices, multiprocessorsystems, microprocessor-based systems, set top boxes, programmableconsumer electronics, network PCs, minicomputer systems, mainframecomputer systems, and distributed cloud computing environments thatinclude any of the above systems or devices, and the like.

Computer system/server 12 may be described in the general context ofcomputer system-executable instructions, such as program modules, beingexecuted by a computer system. Generally, program modules may includeroutines, programs, objects, components, logic, data structures, and soon that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract datatypes. Computer system/server 12 may be practiced in distributed cloudcomputing environments where tasks are performed by remote processingdevices that are linked through a communications network. In adistributed cloud computing environment, program modules may be locatedin both local and remote computer system storage media including memorystorage devices.

As shown in FIG. 5, computer system/server 12 in cloud computing node 10is shown in the form of a general-purpose computing device. Thecomponents of computer system/server 12 may include, but are not limitedto, one or more processors or processing units 16, a system memory 28,and a bus 18 that couples various system components including systemmemory 28 to processor 16.

Bus 18 represents one or more of any of several types of bus structures,including a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, anaccelerated graphics port, and a processor or local bus using any of avariety of bus architectures. By way of example, and not limitation,such architectures include Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus,Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus, Enhanced ISA (EISA) bus, VideoElectronics Standards Association (VESA) local bus, and PeripheralComponent Interconnects (PCI) bus.

Computer system/server 12 typically includes a variety of computersystem readable media. Such media may be any available media that isaccessible by computer system/server 12, and it includes both volatileand non-volatile media, removable and non-removable media.

System memory 28 can include computer system readable media in the formof volatile memory, such as random access memory (RAM) 30 and/or cachememory 32. Computer system/server 12 may further include otherremovable/non-removable, volatile/non-volatile computer system storagemedia. By way of example only, storage system 34 can be provided forreading from and writing to a non-removable, non-volatile magnetic media(not shown and typically called a “hard drive”). Although not shown, amagnetic disk drive for reading from and writing to a removable,non-volatile magnetic disk (e.g., a “floppy disk”), and an optical diskdrive for reading from or writing to a removable, non-volatile opticaldisk such as a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM or other optical media can be provided.In such instances, each can be connected to bus 18 by one or more datamedia interfaces. As will be further depicted and described below,memory 28 may include at least one program product having a set (e.g.,at least one) of program modules that are configured to carry out thefunctions of embodiments of the invention.

Program/utility 40, having a set (at least one) of program modules 42,may be stored in memory 28 by way of example, and not limitation, aswell as an operating system, one or more application programs, otherprogram modules, and program data. Each of the operating system, one ormore application programs, other program modules, and program data orsome combination thereof, may include an implementation of a networkingenvironment. Program modules 42 generally carry out the functions and/ormethodologies of embodiments of the invention as described herein.

Computer system/server 12 may also communicate with one or more externaldevices 14 such as a keyboard, a pointing device, a display 24, etc.;one or more devices that enable a user to interact with computersystem/server 12; and/or any devices (e.g., network card, modem, etc.)that enable computer system/server 12 to communicate with one or moreother computing devices. Such communication can occur via Input/Output(I/O) interfaces 22. Still yet, computer system/server 12 cancommunicate with one or more networks such as a local area network(LAN), a general wide area network (WAN), and/or a public network (e.g.,the Internet) via network adapter 20. As depicted, network adapter 20communicates with the other components of computer system/server 12 viabus 18. It should be understood that although not shown, other hardwareand/or software components could be used in conjunction with computersystem/server 12. Examples, include, but are not limited to: microcode,device drivers, redundant processing units, external disk drive arrays,RAID systems, tape drives, and data archival storage systems, etc.

Referring now to FIG. 6, illustrative cloud computing environment 50 isdepicted. As shown, cloud computing environment 50 comprises one or morecloud computing nodes 10 with which local computing devices used bycloud consumers, such as, for example, personal digital assistant (PDA)or cellular telephone 54A, desktop computer 54B, laptop computer 54C,and/or automobile computer system 54N may communicate. Nodes 10 maycommunicate with one another. They may be grouped (not shown) physicallyor virtually, in one or more networks, such as Private, Community,Public, or Hybrid clouds as described hereinabove, or a combinationthereof. This allows cloud computing environment 50 to offerinfrastructure, platforms and/or software as services for which a cloudconsumer does not need to maintain resources on a local computingdevice. It is understood that the types of computing devices 54A-N shownin FIG. 6 are intended to be illustrative only and that computing nodes10 and cloud computing environment 50 can communicate with any type ofcomputerized device over any type of network and/or network addressableconnection (e.g., using a web browser).

Referring now to FIG. 7, a set of functional abstraction layers providedby cloud computing environment 50 (FIG. 6) is shown. It should beunderstood in advance that the components, layers, and functions shownin FIG. 7 are intended to be illustrative only and embodiments of theinvention are not limited thereto. As depicted, the following layers andcorresponding functions are provided:

Hardware and software layer 60 includes hardware and softwarecomponents. Examples of hardware components include: mainframes 61; RISC(Reduced Instruction Set Computer) architecture based servers 62;servers 63; blade servers 64; storage devices 65; and networks andnetworking components 66. In an embodiment, software components includenetwork application server software 67 and database software 68.

Virtualization layer 70 provides an abstraction layer from which thefollowing examples of virtual entities may be provided: virtual servers71; virtual storage 72; virtual networks 73, including virtual privatenetworks; virtual applications and operating systems 74; and virtualclients 75.

In one example, management layer 80 may provide the functions describedbelow. Resource provisioning 81 provides dynamic procurement ofcomputing resources and other resources that are utilized to performtasks within the cloud computing environment. Metering and Pricing 82provide cost tracking as resources are utilized within the cloudcomputing environment, and billing or invoicing for consumption of theseresources. In one example, these resources may comprise applicationsoftware licenses. Security provides identity verification for cloudconsumers and tasks, as well as protection for data and other resources.User portal 83 provides access to the cloud computing environment forconsumers and system administrators. Service level management 84provides cloud computing resource allocation and management such thatrequired service levels are met. Service Level Agreement (SLA) planningand fulfillment 85 provide pre-arrangement for, and procurement of,cloud computing resources for which a future requirement is anticipatedin accordance with an SLA.

Workloads layer 90 provides examples of functionality for which thecloud computing environment may be utilized. Examples of workloads andfunctions which may be provided from this layer include: mapping andnavigation 91; software development and lifecycle management 92; virtualclassroom education delivery 93; data analytics processing 94;transaction processing 95; and forum portal discussion 96.

Aspects of the present invention may be a system, a method, and/or acomputer program product. The computer program product may include acomputer readable storage medium (or media) having computer readableprogram instructions thereon for causing a processor to carry outaspects of the various embodiments.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that canretain and store instructions for use by an instruction executiondevice. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but isnot limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device,an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, asemiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of thecomputer readable storage medium includes the following: a portablecomputer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMor Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portablecompact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD),a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such aspunch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructionsrecorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. Acomputer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construedas being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freelypropagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagatingthrough a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulsespassing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmittedthrough a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, awide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprisecopper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wirelesstransmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/oredge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in eachcomputing/processing device receives computer readable programinstructions from the network and forwards the computer readable programinstructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium withinthe respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations ofembodiments of the present invention may be assembler instructions,instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions,machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions,state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in anycombination of one or more programming languages, including an objectoriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, andconventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C”programming language or similar programming languages. The computerreadable program instructions may execute entirely on the user'scomputer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone softwarepackage, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computeror entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario,the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through anytype of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide areanetwork (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer(for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).In an embodiment, electronic circuitry including, for example,programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), orprogrammable logic arrays (PLA) may execute the computer readableprogram instructions by utilizing state information of the computerreadable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry,in order to perform aspects of embodiments of the present invention.

Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of theinvention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer readable program instructions.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to aprocessor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, suchthat the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computeror other programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructionsmay also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can directa computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or otherdevices to function in a particular manner, such that the computerreadable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises anarticle of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects ofthe function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram blockor blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other deviceto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer,other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computerimplemented process, such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods, and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof instructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternativeimplementations, the functions noted in the block may occur out of theorder noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in successionmay, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks maysometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon thefunctionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of theblock diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocksin the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implementedby special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specifiedfunctions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardwareand computer instructions.

The descriptions of the various embodiments of the present inventionhave been presented for purposes of illustration, but are not intendedto be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed. Manymodifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skillin the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the describedembodiments. The terminology used herein was chosen to explain theprinciples of the embodiments, the practical application or technicalimprovement over technologies found in the marketplace, or to enableothers of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodimentsdisclosed herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:receiving, within a main forum portal, a first user request identifyinga plurality of resources, the plurality of resources corresponding toone or more user questions about the plurality of resources; identifyingat least a first subordinate forum portal of the main forum portal thatis associated with at least one of the plurality of resources; andproviding, based on at least the identifying, a first option for use injoining the first subordinate forum portal.
 2. The method of claim 1,further comprising: identifying a second subordinate forum portal of themain forum portal that is associated with at least one of the pluralityof resources; providing, based on at least the identifying the secondsubordinate forum portal, a second option for use in joining the secondsubordinate forum portal; and receiving a second user request to jointhe first subordinate forum portal;
 3. The method of claim 2, furthercomprising: providing the first subordinate forum portal by causing aclient computing device to display the first subordinate forum portal;and receiving the one or more questions within the first subordinateforum portal.
 4. The method of claim 2, further comprising providing afirst matching percentage for the first option and a second matchingpercentage for the second option, the first matching percentageindicating a percentage of the plurality of resources that areidentified in the first subordinate forum portal, and the secondmatching percentage indicating a percentage of the plurality ofresources that are identified in the second subordinate forum portal. 5.The method of claim 2, further comprising ranking the first option andthe second option.
 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the ranking isbased on a quantity of users associated with the first subordinate forumportal and the second subordinate forum portal and further based on anactivity level within the first subordinate forum portal and the secondsubordinate forum portal.
 7. The method of claim 5, wherein the rankingis further based on a first matching percentage of the first option anda second matching percentage of the second option, the first matchingpercentage indicating a percentage of the plurality of resources thatare identified in the first subordinate portal, and the second matchingpercentage indicating a percentage of the plurality of resources thatare identified in the second subordinate forum portal.
 8. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising providing, prior to the receiving of thefirst user request, a notification, the notification specifying aninquiry to the user to join a subordinate forum portal based on theuser's resources.